520 Park Avenue

Ellison Entrances on NYC's
Billionaires' Row

New York City’s Billionaires’ Row is home to the city’s richest of the rich, who reside in ultra-luxury skyscrapers best described as “mansions in the sky.” These high-end apartments, condos and penthouses boast unmatched amenities and furnishings and demand opulence from the ground entrance to the individual units more than a thousand feet up.

Ellison Bronze, manufacturer of premier custom balanced and standard doors for commercial entrances around the world, recently provided seven pairs of specialty doors for the newest addition to Billionaires’ Row, 520 Park Avenue. Ellison doors were specifically selected because they met the architect’s design vision for big, vintage New York City bronze entrances.

520 Park is an impressive limestone-clad skyscraper in the heart of New York City’s Upper East Side neighborhood. The luxurious, 54-story building features 35 residences capped off with a three-story, $130 million penthouse.

Project architects at SLCE brought Robert A.M. Stern Architects’ design concept to life, delivering full-height bronze doors to serve as an impressive entrance for residents at 520 Park, the newest building on NYC’s Billionaires’ Row. Ellison Bronze supplied bronze specialty doors for the main entrance, the adjacent service entrance and additional doors leading to the building’s meticulously designed courtyard.

“We were tasked with selecting a door manufacturer for 520 Park and we only presented Ellison,” said Richard Shamenek, senior project manager at Enterprise Architectural Sales, Inc. “Ellison is the only manufacturer we are aware of that could provide a series of doors of this size while matching the style established by the architects.”

The building features seven pairs of custom offset pivoted swing doors. Made with #280 Muntz bronze, the doors feature a satin #4 finish and were statuary finished in the field to achieve a darker tone.

The main entrance and service doors are 6 feet wide by 9 feet 5 inches tall. The service entrance includes an additional bronze transom matching the doors for a total of 11 feet 6 inches tall.

Robert A.M. Stern Architects and SLCE knew their work on 520 Park would be critiqued like all new buildings on Billionaires’ Row are. The owner, Zeckendorf Development, has deep roots in NYC as a premium real estate developer and a rich history in high-end housing. 520 Park needed to exude quality, luxury and longevity.

“We knew that each building component had to be perfect to get the Zeckendorf stamp of approval,” added Shamenek. “The Ellison entrances serve as the gateway to multi-million-dollar residences, and that in itself is a true testament to their merit.”

The main entrance includes an impressive downlit canopy bearing the tower’s name. Below are Ellison specialty doors, made of bronze, set in a coordinating frame and overhead transom finished in Antique Satin Bronze. The frames and canopy were provided by Hi-Tech Metals and installed by Enterprise Architectural Sales, Inc. Mackenzie Door Company installed the doors.

Ellison doors are either formed or extruded from durable materials that produce a rigid, unitized structure allowing them to outshine and outlast typical commercial entryways. Each door is custom-crafted to meet specific design criteria set forth by the architect.

“We knew Ellison would be a great partner for 520 Park,” added Shamenek. “That’s why we chose them: reputation for being the best and their previous experience fabricating this type of door.”

Shamenek stated that the installation process proceeded as efficient as planned. Mackenzie Door Company’s field personnel worked closely with Enterprise to precisely fit the Ellison door frames within the custom bronze storefront. Performing this for each doorway, Mackenzie then worked with the general contractor, Lendlease, and the electrician to outfit select doors with power operators.

Ellison provides detailed record keeping and full warranties on each door they manufacture, which is important considering their extensive lifespan. All Ellison custom balanced doors are imprinted with an individual project number to aid in easy tracking and maintenance. In addition, all balanced hardware components are machined in-house, so replacements are readily available.

Quality control has always been of paramount importance at Ellison Bronze, ensuring that all products are manufactured to the highest quality and performance standards. This is why each door, including all balance hardware mechanisms, are cast, crafted, formed and uniquely constructed from the finest choice of materials at the company’s Falconer, NY, facility.

520 Park Avenue was completed in May 2019.

The project team included door manufacturer Ellison Bronze; facade enclosure specialist Enterprise Architectural Sales, Inc.; door installer Mackenzie Door Company; metal fabricator Hi-Tech Metals; architects SLCE Architects and Robert A.M. Stern Architects; and general contractor and construction management company Lendlease.